| Company Women - July 2008 |
Three Years of Female Networking
"No, Company Women is not my company. Neither is it a knitting and gossip club for bored women". This is an explanation that Company Women's founder member, Caroline Garrett, has had to give several times over the last three years - ever since she got the brilliant idea of creating a female-only networking group for English speaking women in business here in Spain. Caroline is passionate about networking. Company Women is a non-profit organisation and the enormous success of the networking group is solely down to Caroline's unstoppable energy, an energy she - together with her skills and knowledge within PR and marketing - is giving lavishly to Company Women in her spare time.
"Never have so much, been owed by so many, to so few". Winston Churchill's famous words could apply to Company Women. Today over 400 women are in their database, with an average of 40-50 women attending the lunches every month in the Costa Blanca area, and an average of 20-25 being at the lunches in Murcia.
In June Company Women celebrated their three year's anniversary. In the same month the Murcian group celebrated one year of existence. Word has reached business women in Almería, and the lunches in Murcia now have women from there attending. As it happened, with the start of the lunches in Murcia, the women from Almería have now begun to request a group to be started there as well.
Company Women is not only about lunches. During the last three years, several courses, aimed at foreign business women in Spain have taken place. Last year Company Women instigated awards to celebrate the success of women in business. Five awards were given out at a fabulous gala event in Hotel Thalasia in San Pedro del Pinatar. Among the five winners, an overall winner was "crowned" Company Woman of The Year. To celebrate International Women's Day in March, Company Women held a conference with the theme "What Marvellous Women Do Away from Home". Speakers included successful business women from both America and U.K.
The awards and gala event of last year will be repeated on November 16 2008. The awards event will take place in Lago La Torre, in La Torre Golf Resort near Balsicas. Over 300 guests attended in 2007 and the organisers expect over 400 to be in attendance this year.
There are again five categories: Bright Idea, Women in Communities, Start-up Success, Service Ambassador, and Business Achiever. Nominees do not need to be members of Company Women - any woman who has achieved success, whether it is having her own business or working for a company or for a charity organisation, can be nominated; inclusive of herself.
Funding of the awards comes from sponsorships. Among the many sponsorships already in place is the main sponsor ABACO (legal and tax advisors) and a sponsorship from 1car1. Sponsorships are given by small as well as big businesses and the overall winner will be showered in gifts from free hairdressing to a limousine for a day.
It is not necessary to be a member of Company Women to attend the lunches. Membership does though give certain benefits like discounts in an extensive list of businesses, speaker's slot at the lunches - a possibility for promoting your business and access to the members' area on Company Women's website. The member fee goes towards running the website, which since the launch of the awards last year, has around 3,000 visitors per month.
Lunches are held in Costa Blanca the first Thursday in every month, and in Murcia every second Thursday in the month.
For further information please visit www.companywomen.org.